CEELM: First, congratulations on winning the DOTY!

CEELM: First, congratulations on your work on the deal picked by our jurors as the Deal of the Year! 

Nicoara: First, congratulations on winning the Deal of the Year award in Moldova!

CEELM: Tell us a bit about the deal and your firm’s role in getting it across the finish line. 

CEELM: First, congratulations on winning the Deal of the Year award in Austria!

Peterka & Partners has been steadily expanding its reach across Europe for more than 23 years, with the recent addition of Croatia to the firm’s network. Peterka & Partners Managing Partner Ondrej Peterka and the Croatian firm’s Main Contact Person, Attorney-at-Law Anja Haramija, share details about the firm’s vision and its recent expansion.

The Macedonian real estate market reached its greatest growth and development in the last ten years. As a result of the increased investments in the real estate market, the legislation that regulates the respective matter is constantly changing to meet the amended conditions resulting from the growth, so we can see simplified procedures for obtaining building permits and simplified procedures for the transfer of ownership rights.

The real estate market in Greece has risen the most in the last years, creating attractive incentives for institutional investors, who are constantly seeking optimal investment structures to implement their large-scale real estate projects. A highly popular investment vehicle among seasoned real estate players has been the Real Estate Investment Company (REIC), which promises investors financial benefits and a more stable and favorable tax regime.

The end of the COVID-19 pandemic led to growth in the commercial real estate market in Bulgaria. So far, the biggest winners are the office, industrial, and logistics sectors, since most investors and retailers are still hesitant about the future of shopping centers. According to the latest reports, the available office space in Bulgaria increased by 7% in the second half of 2022, and more than 180,000 square meters of office space were leased during the same period, the highest amount since 2017.

In the complex administrative apparatus and historical diversity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, a complex system of Real Estate Registries was developed. What does a buyer need to know in order to protect themselves from the risks that can arise in the purchase of real estate?

The laws of Ukraine define force majeure as an extraordinary and unpreventable event, man-made or act of God, which objectively makes impossible the performance of contractual obligation(s) by one or both parties to a contract. Force majeure exempts a non-performing party from liability (penalties) for breach of contractual duty if caused by force majeure rather than from the performance of contractual obligations.

At the end of 2022, the Latvian Supreme Court finally made a judgment in one of the dozens of civil cases stemming from the so-called Zolitude tragedy. 54 people died and dozens were injured back in 2013, when the roof of a trade center located in one of the suburbs of Riga, Zolitude, collapsed.

On February 9, 2023, the Committee on Industry, Research, and Energy voted in favor of a revised Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), which is a part of the EU’s new extensive climate and energy legislation known as “Fit for 55”. The main objective of the revised EPBD is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the overall energy consumption of buildings by 2030 with the eventual goal of reaching climate-neutral buildings in the EU by 2050.

A building permit, according to Polish construction law, is the administrative decision authorizing the commencement and the carrying out of construction or the execution of building work other than construction of a building structure.

The Austrian real estate market has been characterized by steady growth over the last decade, driven by a strong economy, low-interest rates, and increasing demand from both local and foreign buyers. 

Strategic investment project legislation was first introduced into the Croatian legal system through the Strategic Investment Act that came into force in 2013, which, after two amendments (in 2014 and 2016), was replaced by the new Strategic Investment Act in April 2018.

On November 11, 2022, the Romanian Senate (as decisional chamber) passed a draft law that includes certain amendments with respect to the terms applicable to administrative and court challenges brought against construction and urbanism documentation.

In the past few years, the global community has faced the acute challenges of the COVID-19 health crisis and the war in Ukraine, which significantly impacted the continuing rapid increase of prices in the building industry. The main reasons for the rising prices of building materials were initially linked to the health crisis, as many production facilities were closed and production was severely delayed. Once the post-closure period started, demand for materials worldwide surged, exceeding supply.